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Chinese， a language with a complicated four-tone pronunciation system and words that are not made up of letters as in alphabetic systems， is regarded as difficult to learn. However， despite this difficulty， more non-native Chinese speakers across the globe are fluent in the language than ever before.
The same is true in Africa. Late in May this year， at the Chinese Bridge， Chinese Proficient South African preliminary competition held in Durban， 32 students from universities， colleges and secondary schools throughout South Africa showcased their Chinese skills through speeches and talent shows.
While a few of them have studied for years， many are just beginners. How have they picked up the language and what challenges did they encounter along the way to mastering their skills？ Some of these South African students shared their language journeys.
Persistency and dedication
Albertus De Man， first prize winner in the secondary students’ group in the competition， impressed the audience with his clear， standard pronunciation and fluency. In his speech， he cited many Chinese idioms， showing a good understanding of the language and culture. De Man will represent South African students in the final global competition taking place in China in November 2015.
The ninth-grader from the Cape Academy of Mathematics， Science and Technology started to learn Chinese in the cradle. He went to China with his parents when he was eight months old. “Before I was even a one-year-old， I had started learning Chinese through listening and watching things around me，” he said. “I went to a local kindergarten when I was old enough. We also had a Chinese helper who would talk Chinese to me when I was at home.”
He returned to South Africa with his parents in 2012 after almost 12 years in China and has continued with his Chinese studies. “It will be a waste of the time and hard work I have put into in learning this beautiful but complex language if I stop，” he explained.
However， he admitted that Chinese is very difficult to learn. “You have to constantly work on and revise it，” said De Man. “Without doing this you will never really improve.” He noticed that most foreign students don’t have the opportunity to be part of a Chinese speaking community， nor do they write the Chinese characters daily. De Man overcomes these problems by listening to Chinese music and watching Chinese TV shows， and also doing his daily homework. China is becoming such a big part of the world’s political and economic fields， De Man said， adding he feels good to speak Chinese and understand the Chinese culture.
Practice and travel
“If you ask me how China is， I will tell you that China is warm and friendly，” said Hadebe Nokuthula in the speech she made during the competition. “If you ask me how Chinese people are， I will tell you that they are diligent， polite and peaceful.” She said she has never seen a country as friendly as China or a land as picturesque as China， and the country has opened up a whole new world to her. Nokuthula won second prize in the college students’ group with her fluent Chinese and tai chi performance， a kind of traditional Chinese shadow boxing.
A sophomore at the Durban University of Tech-nology （DUT） majoring in isiZulu， English and French， Nokuthula began to learn Chinese in May 2014 after she entered the university. She is one of the first students to join a pilot project offered by the Confucius Institute in DUT. Nokuthula has completed two levels of the Chinese Proficiency Test （HSK） and proceeded to the third level in July.
“Being a language student， I see it highly beneficial to expand my knowledge of foreign languages，”she said. “I wish one day to translate documents from the languages into my home language.”Nokuthula said that the bigger picture for her is perhaps to obtain HSK level 6 and to pursue her studies in China.
Chinese language is a completely different language to learn but rewarding at the end， she said.“The best advice I would give to foreign students learning Chinese would be that they should seize every opportunity to practice， and watching videos provided on the Internet is very helpful，” she said.
Nokuthula has four hours of Mandarin lessons each week at the university. She also does a lot of self-studying by watching Chinese videos and reading simple texts. Her trip to China last January helped her know more about the country. The most valuable lesson she has learned is that “we need to work very hard in order to live the comfortable life we all aspire for.”
Speak often
Sizwe Sisoka didn’t win a big prize， but is happy to take part in the competition to monitor his Chinese skills after five months’ learning.
Sisoka is doing his second year in Language Practice at DUT. He joined the Chinese learning program in his school in February 2015. “My love for Mandarin has always been there， just that I was never exposed to it until this year，” he said. To him， Chinese is not difficult to speak to an isiZulu speaker， because it does not have clicks like other languages. Chinese culture and history help him memorize Chinese characters.
He said he tries to speak Chinese when he is in Chinese malls or shops. He has a dictionary in his phone that shows Chinese characters， with descriptions in English as well as Chinese pronunciation.
As a language student， Sisoka’s dream is to be- come an internationally recognized translator and to teach English in China.
Not a day’s work
Daniel Stein’s speech and cross-talk won him third prize in the college group. A second-year student at Stellenbosch University majoring in linguistics and Chinese， Stein has been learning Chinese for one and a half years.
He picked up Chinese six months before entering the university because of its “beauty of pronunciation.” He taught himself through watching China Central Television and listening to Chinese radio programs and used the Internet to search for solutions to grammar and other problems.
Chinese language with its complicated tone system fascinates Stein， who enjoys linguistics by nature. He spends 50 minutes a day learning Chinese in school， after which he reviews his work and works on HSK listening comprehension tests.
Stein realized that Chinese is not easy to learn， but he is prepared to progress step by step. “It is just like a tree seed，” he said， comparing the Chinese learning process to a gardener’s job. “You have to water it now and then it will grow to a tall tree one day. The process may be very long， but your work and effort will finally be rewarded.”
The same is true in Africa. Late in May this year， at the Chinese Bridge， Chinese Proficient South African preliminary competition held in Durban， 32 students from universities， colleges and secondary schools throughout South Africa showcased their Chinese skills through speeches and talent shows.
While a few of them have studied for years， many are just beginners. How have they picked up the language and what challenges did they encounter along the way to mastering their skills？ Some of these South African students shared their language journeys.
Persistency and dedication
Albertus De Man， first prize winner in the secondary students’ group in the competition， impressed the audience with his clear， standard pronunciation and fluency. In his speech， he cited many Chinese idioms， showing a good understanding of the language and culture. De Man will represent South African students in the final global competition taking place in China in November 2015.
The ninth-grader from the Cape Academy of Mathematics， Science and Technology started to learn Chinese in the cradle. He went to China with his parents when he was eight months old. “Before I was even a one-year-old， I had started learning Chinese through listening and watching things around me，” he said. “I went to a local kindergarten when I was old enough. We also had a Chinese helper who would talk Chinese to me when I was at home.”
He returned to South Africa with his parents in 2012 after almost 12 years in China and has continued with his Chinese studies. “It will be a waste of the time and hard work I have put into in learning this beautiful but complex language if I stop，” he explained.
However， he admitted that Chinese is very difficult to learn. “You have to constantly work on and revise it，” said De Man. “Without doing this you will never really improve.” He noticed that most foreign students don’t have the opportunity to be part of a Chinese speaking community， nor do they write the Chinese characters daily. De Man overcomes these problems by listening to Chinese music and watching Chinese TV shows， and also doing his daily homework. China is becoming such a big part of the world’s political and economic fields， De Man said， adding he feels good to speak Chinese and understand the Chinese culture.
Practice and travel
“If you ask me how China is， I will tell you that China is warm and friendly，” said Hadebe Nokuthula in the speech she made during the competition. “If you ask me how Chinese people are， I will tell you that they are diligent， polite and peaceful.” She said she has never seen a country as friendly as China or a land as picturesque as China， and the country has opened up a whole new world to her. Nokuthula won second prize in the college students’ group with her fluent Chinese and tai chi performance， a kind of traditional Chinese shadow boxing.
A sophomore at the Durban University of Tech-nology （DUT） majoring in isiZulu， English and French， Nokuthula began to learn Chinese in May 2014 after she entered the university. She is one of the first students to join a pilot project offered by the Confucius Institute in DUT. Nokuthula has completed two levels of the Chinese Proficiency Test （HSK） and proceeded to the third level in July.
“Being a language student， I see it highly beneficial to expand my knowledge of foreign languages，”she said. “I wish one day to translate documents from the languages into my home language.”Nokuthula said that the bigger picture for her is perhaps to obtain HSK level 6 and to pursue her studies in China.
Chinese language is a completely different language to learn but rewarding at the end， she said.“The best advice I would give to foreign students learning Chinese would be that they should seize every opportunity to practice， and watching videos provided on the Internet is very helpful，” she said.
Nokuthula has four hours of Mandarin lessons each week at the university. She also does a lot of self-studying by watching Chinese videos and reading simple texts. Her trip to China last January helped her know more about the country. The most valuable lesson she has learned is that “we need to work very hard in order to live the comfortable life we all aspire for.”
Speak often
Sizwe Sisoka didn’t win a big prize， but is happy to take part in the competition to monitor his Chinese skills after five months’ learning.
Sisoka is doing his second year in Language Practice at DUT. He joined the Chinese learning program in his school in February 2015. “My love for Mandarin has always been there， just that I was never exposed to it until this year，” he said. To him， Chinese is not difficult to speak to an isiZulu speaker， because it does not have clicks like other languages. Chinese culture and history help him memorize Chinese characters.
He said he tries to speak Chinese when he is in Chinese malls or shops. He has a dictionary in his phone that shows Chinese characters， with descriptions in English as well as Chinese pronunciation.
As a language student， Sisoka’s dream is to be- come an internationally recognized translator and to teach English in China.
Not a day’s work
Daniel Stein’s speech and cross-talk won him third prize in the college group. A second-year student at Stellenbosch University majoring in linguistics and Chinese， Stein has been learning Chinese for one and a half years.
He picked up Chinese six months before entering the university because of its “beauty of pronunciation.” He taught himself through watching China Central Television and listening to Chinese radio programs and used the Internet to search for solutions to grammar and other problems.
Chinese language with its complicated tone system fascinates Stein， who enjoys linguistics by nature. He spends 50 minutes a day learning Chinese in school， after which he reviews his work and works on HSK listening comprehension tests.
Stein realized that Chinese is not easy to learn， but he is prepared to progress step by step. “It is just like a tree seed，” he said， comparing the Chinese learning process to a gardener’s job. “You have to water it now and then it will grow to a tall tree one day. The process may be very long， but your work and effort will finally be rewarded.”